Hybrid View

IL 2013 Acura ILX First Drive

First Impression:
It's more of a Jetta replacement than a reborn Integra, but a quality cabin, a well-damped ride, above-average fuel economy and realistic pricing should ensure the ILX finds its buyer.

Although the ILX is efficient and lightweight like the Acura Integra, the ILX is a more polished sedan for grown-ups. It has a well-damped ride, an upscale interior and plenty of electronics to placate smartphone users. It's priced sanely, too, with a base MSRP of $26,795.

It's the kind of small car you enjoy driving to work more so than wringing it out on a back road. And while that's not exactly what old-school Honda guys want to hear, the ILX marks a return to the less-is-more philosophy that defined Acura in its early years.

The 2013 Acura ILX is close in size to the Buick Verano and Volkswagen Jetta, but company officials don't consider either of those cars key competitors. Instead, they have their eyes on the Audi A3, Volvo S40 (well, whatever latent demand it left behind when Volvo discontinued it) and Lexus CT 200h.

So this is the EL replacement, essentially. Coming down to U.S. this time? We'll see how this goes. If you think about it, the current civic is the size of the original TSX, one could consider this a proper TSX replacement (far cry, I know) with the 2.4 and a manual box...

I don't understand the target buyer here. Non car people who just fancy a small sedan with premium badge even if it comes with inferior content to cheaper cars....Oh but these buyers also don't consider Buick premium or just an older person brand. And sports cars and Mustangs are ugly and gas guzzling. And german cars are unreliable can't be trusted. Only Japan builds quality cars that run forever.

Ok found the ILX buyer I guess.

Last edited by 2.0T_Convert; 04-20-2012 at 08:14 AM.

Sent from my tablet while sipping weak drinks over fancy brunch with a view

It's not a bad looking car, but what I don't understand is how does this fit with the TSX in existence? It's not much smaller, and not much cheaper. Where is the incentive to buy this over a base TSX?

Yikes, nevermind...I see the base trim is up to 30k now...

Well in order to increase sales, they are replacing the TSX (you know, their volume seller), with the ILX. They are then going to shrink the TL back to old TL size since the boat/beak look didn't pan out. So really, for all intents and purposes, this IS the new TSX (kind of like the current TSX basically replaced the TL as the volume seller when the TL grew bigger/uglier).

This back and forth and general lack of direction pains me as a Honda fanboy. Ito really needs to go.

It's astonishing how fast and far Honda has fallen. This car, with a revvier engine and a sophisticated suspension could have carved out a niche for itself in this marketplace as the Integra did. Now it's just a me-too player in an increasingly crowded space. It's not a bad looking car, but it definitely seems like it's no Integra. And that is a huge missed opportunity.

It's astonishing how fast and far Honda has fallen. This car, with a revvier engine and a sophisticated suspension could have carved out a niche for itself in this marketplace as the Integra did. Now it's just a me-too player in an increasingly crowded space. It's not a bad looking car, but it definitely seems like it's no Integra. And that is a huge missed opportunity.

I totally agree. However, when equipped with the 2.4 liter (revs to 7500) and the six speed manual, this could very possibly be a fun little car to drive around.

2.0 liter 150 hp with an autotragic is a far-cry from 2.4 liter 200 hp with a six speed manual.

I could see it selling in decent numbers, and if the Acura nameplate isn't doing too well with D-segment sedan buyers, why not move down? Honda left a hole in their lineup when they decontented the 2012 Civic.

Really don't like the center console though, looks cheap and out of place:

Originally Posted by Rob Cote

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